Chapter 3 Requirements Determination

Chapter 3: Requirements Determination

Answer to Your Turn 3-1: Identifying Requirements
1. Functional business requirements: 2, 4, 6, 8. Student responses may include any
example that represents a request for system information or business process.
2. Nonfunctional business requirements: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 10. Student responses may
include any example that represents a behavioral property that the system must
have (e.g., operational, performance, security, cultural, and political).

Answer to Your Turn 3-2: Collecting Data for the Long Term
1. Given the preponderance of data to examine for requirements, it would be easier
to manage using a RAD or agile approach. This type of approach would allow the
developers to determine requirements for smaller segments of the overall system
in incremental stages.
2. It would be essential to fully define both the business and system requirements at
the very beginning of the project. At some point in the requirements analysis,
these will break down into functional and non-functional requirements. While this
step can be time-consuming, having a requirements definition is absolutely
necessary in creating a strategic planning system.
3. Both functional and non-functional requirements would be included in building
the system. Functional requirements might include:
a. Managing the proposal of new drugs
b. Managing the development and testing of drugs
c. Managing the marketing of approved drugs
Non functional requirements might include:
a. Operational requirements
b. Performance requirements
c. Security requirements
d. Cultural and Political requirements

Answer to Your Turn 3-3: IBM Credit

Students might list Activity-Based Costing, Informal Benchmarking and Duration
Analysis. Conducting a duration analysis would illustrate problem areas in this
process, and a process integration analysis would certainly help in reducing the
number of steps required to complete the process. One of the major problems in this
scenario is that too many departments are involved. Any student response that
includes reducing the number of departments, or the number of steps required, which
would decrease the time involved, would be right on track.

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Answer to Your Turn 3-4: Analysis Technique

Informal benchmarking would be the best choice. Visiting existing car dealer web
sites and critiquing the sites would provide information on what the competition
offers, as well as illustrating what doesn‟t work well on a dealer web site. This would
be a baseline for what this web site should offer. Additional functionality would then
increase the competitive edge.

Answer to Your Turn 3-5: Interview Practice

Student responses will vary depending upon how the interviews are conducted, and
what was observed.

Answer to Your Turn 3-6: JAD Practice

Student responses will vary depending upon how the JAD session was conducted, and
what was observed.

Answer to Your Turn 4-7: Questionnaire Practice

Student responses will vary depending upon how their experience with both the
questionnaire completed and the questionnaire created.

Answer to Your Turn 3-8: Observation Practice

Student responses will vary depending upon the results of their observations.

Concepts in Action 3-B: Success from Failure

1. Student answers will vary depending upon how comfortable they feel with a
dynamic system. Given the characteristics of a web-based system, and the ease of
changing such a system, the „just-in-time‟ type of system requirement changes
works quite well. Any analyst that worked in this type of dynamic change
environment would have to be comfortable with continually optimizing the
system based on feedback from the users.
2. Student answers will vary depending upon the example they choose.

Concepts in Action 3-D: Selecting the Wrong People

Interview schedule:
First and second line managers – determine how processes are managed
People the managers supervise – determine how processes work

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Actual users of the system – determine what work is actually done, how they feel
about the system, how it might be improved, etc.

Concepts in Action 3-E: The Reluctant Interviewee

1. Being the single person who understands the system is a powerful position to be
in. The interviewee might be reluctant to share that information as that may
diminish their importance to the organization. It might also have been an instance
of where the interviewee just did not feel comfortable with the interviewer.
2. After the first interview, the interviewer may already have felt that the interview
did not „go well‟. At that point, there were a couple of options; the interviewer
could have submitted a list of questions for the interviewee to answer and send
back, or the interviewer could have provided an alternate interviewer in the hopes
that he or she might have been able to build a rapport with the interviewee.

Concepts in Action 3-F: Publix Credit Card Forms

1. The credit card form, while containing all pertinent information, is not being used
as designed. In this case employees are constantly modifying the form to
accommodate the flow of information among employees, often with errors being
introduced.

2. The form should be modified so that the text which displays the total is larger.

Solutions to End of Chapter Questions

1. What is the meaning of analysis? What is the purpose of the analysis phase of the
SDLC?

The term analysis can be defined as: breaking a whole into its parts with the intent of
understanding the parts‟ nature, function, and interrelationships. The analysis phase
takes the general ideas in the system request and refines them into a detailed
understanding of what the new system needs to do.

2. What are the key elements of a system proposal?

Key elements of a System Proposal include: detailed requirements definition, use

cases, process models, data models, a revised feasibility analysis and a work plan.

3. A system development project may be approached in one of two ways: as a single,

monolithic project in which all requirements are considered at once or as a series of
smaller projects focusing on smaller sets of requirements. Which approach seems to
be more successful? Why do you suppose this is true?

Typically, breaking a large project into smaller manageable projects has a higher rate
of success. One reason for this is that it is difficult to determine requirements for a
„monolithic‟ project, the scope is simply too large to conceptualize. Breaking it down

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into smaller component projects allows for ease of understanding of functionality and
processes.

4. Explain what is meant by a functional requirement. What are two types of functional
requirements? Give two examples of each.

A functional requirement relates directly to a process the system has to perform

(process-oriented) or information it needs to contain (information-oriented). Student
examples will vary.

5. Explain what is meant by a nonfunctional requirement. What are the primary types of
nonfunctional requirements? Give two examples of each.

A nonfunctional requirement refers to behavioral properties that the system must

exhibit. Types of nonfunctional requirements include: Operational, Performance,
Security, and Cultural and Political. Student examples will vary.

6. What is the value of producing a requirements definition and having the project
sponsor and key users review and approve it?

A requirements definition effectively describes the scope of the project. Project

sponsors and key users need to review the requirements definition to ensure that it
encompasses the key features of the new system. At this point, any discrepancies and
misunderstandings can be addressed.

7. What are the three basic steps of the analysis process? Is each step performed in
every project? Why or why not?

[1] Understand the as-is system - study the existing system and processes and
understand the strengths and weaknesses.
[2] Identify improvement opportunities - look for the specific things that need to
change.
[3] Develop a system concept – create one or more target conceptualizations for the
to-be system, including an outline of features and models of its basic design.

The first step is sometimes skipped or done in a cursory fashion. This is because
there may not be an existing system to study, the existing system may be irrelevant to
the new system, or the methodology in use (particularly RAD and Agile
Development) does not emphasize the existing system at all.

8. Three analysis techniques are discussed in this chapter: BPA, BPI, and BPR. What
are the distinctions between these techniques?

These three business goals vary in the degree to which the basic business processes in
the as-is system are altered. With “business process automation” the as-is business
processes are not substantially modified; computers are used to take over some of the

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tasks without significantly changing the way things are done. “Business process
improvement” involves some evaluation and modification of the basic business
processes, with a goal of making moderate changes to those processes within the new
system design. “Business process reengineering” involves major revisions to the
basic business processes, potentially making complete changes to the way the work is
performed in the business area.

9. Discuss problem analysis as a BPA activity. What are the strengths and limitations of
this technique?

Problem analysis and root-cause analysis are two different techniques to be employed
in business process automation to determine improvements to the current system.
Problem analysis asks the users and managers of the as-is system to identify system
problems and to suggest problem solution. Problem analysis would be suitable when
the problems being experienced with the as-is system are relatively minor, and the
changes needed are primarily „touch-ups‟. One limitation of problem analysis is that
it only provides minor improvements in business value.

10. Discuss root-cause analysis as a BPA activity. What are the strengths and limitations
of this technique?

Root-cause analysis focuses on being sure that the problem‟s underlying cause is
understood, rather than just assuming that cause is known. This emphasis helps
ensure that solutions chosen will solve real business problems rather than solving a
problem symptom. Root-cause analysis is appropriate when the problems of the as-is
system are more significant, and the team needs assurance that they are designing a
solution that really solves the true problems. One limitation of root-cause analysis
occurs when more than one appears. Additional investigation would then be done to
determine the „true‟ root-cause.

11. Compare and contrast duration analysis and activity-based costing. What role do
these activities play in BPI?

Duration analysis and activity-based costing are techniques used in business process
improvement to help identify system improvement opportunities. These two
techniques focus on existing business processes in the as-is system. “Duration
analysis” assesses the time requirements to complete a process. First, the total time
required to complete a business process is determined. Then the process is broken
down into individual steps, and the time required to complete each step is determined.
The total time of all steps is calculated and compared to the total time of the process.
If these totals are substantially different (total time of process > total time of process
steps), then significant inefficiencies exist, and the process needs major revision.
“Activity-based costing” assesses the costs required to perform a process. In this
technique, the cost of each major process or each step in a business function is
measured. The most costly processes are then the targets of the development team‟s
improvement efforts. Although straightforward in concept, this technique is complex

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in practice due to the difficulty of determining the indirect costs to apply to the
business process(es). Incorrectly assigned indirect costs may bias the results of the
analysis.

12. In general, what is the purpose of the various activities that may be performed in BPR
(e.g. outcome analysis, technology analysis, activity elimination)?

The purpose of a BPR is to completely change the current system to take advantage
of new ideas and technology. Little analysis of the „as-is‟ system is done with BPR.
The outcome analysis focuses on understanding the fundamental outcomes that
provide value to customers, the technology analysis focuses on identifying new
technologies and how they might benefit the new system, and activity elimination
identifies current activities that might be eliminated as well as the effects of that
elimination.

13. The analysis technique of BPA, BPI, and BPR is selected based on several
characteristics of the project. What are these characteristics and how do they
influence the choice of analysis technique?

One factor is the potential value to the business. BPA and BPI both will add low to
moderate value to the business because they strive to make incremental changes to
the as-is system. BPR, on the other hand, has the potential to add significant value to
the business because it will make sweeping changes to the business‟s processes.

The strategies also differ in terms of cost. BPR will probably have significant costs
associated with it, while the costs of BPA and BPI will be much more modest.

The breadth of the analysis will also vary between the strategies. BPR will tackle a
much broader piece of the organization, while BPA and BPI are more narrow in
scope.

Finally, risk is a factor that distinguishes the strategies. BPR, because it attempts
more broad, significant changes, is far more risky than the narrower, more limited
BPA or BPI strategies.

To select an appropriate strategy, the project sponsor needs to evaluate his/her goals
for the project. If the problems being experienced suggest that radical redesign of
business processes is necessary and the organization has the funding and can tolerate
the risk, then a BPR project may be called for. If more moderate changes are
required, or funding is limited, or high risks cannot be tolerated, then BPI is
recommended. When only minor changes are needed because the existing business
processes are acceptable, then BPA is the strategy of choice.

14. Discuss the appropriate way to set up and conduct interviews to gather requirements.

The five major steps to conducting interviews are:

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 Selecting interviewees - determine who should be interviewed, why they should

be interviewed (what contribution will they make to the project?), and develop a
schedule for conducting the interviews.
 Design the interview questions - depending on who is being interviewed and the
type of information desired, the analyst needs to design the interview session with
the appropriate structure and question type.
 Prepare for the interview - review related material; review interview plan; review
interview questions and plan for any anticipated problem areas; inform
interviewee about interview agenda.
 Conduct the interview - establish rapport with the interviewee; explain purpose of
interview; ask interview questions; record information from interviewee.
 Prepare post-interview report - summarize the interview in an interview report.

15. Give an example of a closed-ended question, an open-ended question, and a probing

question. When would each type of question be used?

Student examples will vary.

Closed-ended questions are used when the interviewer is looking for specific, precise
information. Open-ended questions are used to gather a broader, rich information set.
Open-ended questions can help the interviewer learn why things are the way they are,
and also give the interviewee the chance to add ideas or issues that the interviewer did
not anticipate. Probing questions are used whenever the interviewer is not satisfied
with his/her understanding of the interviewee‟s answer, and needs more explanation
before moving on to another topic.

16. “Interviews should always be conducted as structured interviews.” Do you agree

with this statement? Why or why not?

No one interview type will be appropriate for every interview and each type of
interview has a purpose. Structured interviews are interviews that are planned to
gather very specific, detailed information. These interviews use more closed-ended
questions that zero in on specific information and facts. These interviews will be
conducted later in the information gathering process, when the analyst has learned
enough about the business process in order to formulate more specific, detailed
questions.

Unstructured interviews are interviews that are planned to include broad, far-ranging
questions. Often open-ended questions are used to gather information. These
interviews are most likely to be used early in the information gathering process, when
few details are known, and the analyst is trying to understand the basic business
process and the As-Is system.

17. Discuss the considerations that should be made when determining who to include in
interviews and/or JAD sessions?

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First, identify the information that is needed, and then identify the people who can
provide that information. Second, consider the political ramifications of including or
excluding people. All key stakeholders must be included in the information gathering
process.

18. Is the primary purpose of requirements determination to gather facts or opinions?

Explain your answer.

Both are valuable. An opinion is a statement about an issue or situation that may or
may not be supported by fact. If it is stated “Most of our collections are on-time,”
this is an opinion that can be confirmed or denied by doing an actual measurement of
on-time collections. This information is factual, and may provide the basis for the
opinion expressed. Alternatively, the opinion may be a misstatement of actual fact,
and may suggest an area where there is misunderstanding of the true situation.

19. Describe the five major steps in conducting JAD sessions.

The five major steps to conducting JAD sessions are:

 Selecting participants - determine who should be included and why they should be
included (what contribution will they make to the project?).
 Design the JAD session - plan the activities and techniques that will be
incorporated into the JAD session in order to accomplish the session goals.
 Prepare for the JAD session - review related material; review JAD plan; inform
participants about the process and the contributions they‟ll be expected to make.
 Conduct the JAD session - establish rapport with the participants; define session
ground rules; follow session plan and have facilitator conduct various activities
and techniques; record information.
 Prepare post-JAD report - summarize the session in a post-JAD report.

20. Describe the primary roles involved in JAD sessions. What is the major contribution
made by the person(s) fulfilling each role?

The facilitator is responsible for conducting the session. He/she is generally

knowledgeable about IS issues, JAD facilitation, and group behavior management.
The facilitator is responsible for guiding the group through the planned activities on
the JAD agenda. The facilitator must keep the group on track and try to prevent it
from digressing in unproductive directions. The facilitator also helps foster
communication among the group members and assists them through the analysis
techniques that are being used. Finally, the facilitator records the group‟s ideas on a
public display area, organizes the information, and assists the group in working with
the information.

The scribe merely records information as the session proceeds, perhaps using CASE
tools.

21. Discuss the reasons why question design for questionnaires is so difficult.

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Questions on questionnaires need to be very carefully stated in order to avoid

misunderstanding by the recipient. If a question during an interview or a JAD session
is misunderstood, the misunderstanding can be immediately detected and the question
clarified. A poorly worded question on a questionnaire may confuse the recipient,
causing him/her to answer with incorrect information, or may antagonize the
recipient, causing him/her to forego completing the questionnaire.

22. Why is document analysis useful? What insights into the organization can it provide?

Document analysis focuses on existing documentation of the current system, forms

and reports that are a part of the current system, plus any personal forms, reports, or
files that have been developed informally by the end users. By studying this material
the analysts can gain insight into the existing system, how it is used, and possibly also
aspects of the system that are not being used.

23. Outline suggestions to make observation a useful, reliable information gathering

technique.

1. Keep a low profile

2. Do not interrupt employees at work
3. Do not influence those being observed
4. Keep in mind that what you observe may not be normal day-to-day behavior
5. Gather clues from working environment

24. Describe a strategy for using the various information gathering techniques in a
project.

The different information gathering techniques all have strengths and weaknesses,
and the astute analyst will use a combination of techniques in any project. The
analyst should select the techniques based on the type of information being sought,
the breadth and depth of information needed, the degree to information needs to be
integrated, the need for user involvement, and the cost of the technique. Interviews
and JAD sessions are the most productive information gathering methods; however,
these techniques require the most skilled analysts to conduct.

Solutions to End of Chapter Exercises

A. Review the Amazon.com Web site. Develop the requirements definition for the site.
Create a list of functional business requirements that the system meets. What
different kinds of nonfunctional business requirements does the system meet?
Provide examples of each kind.

Examples of Functional Requirements include:

1. Search - enable user to find item(s) based on variety of item characteristics

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2. Browse - enable user to look through items

3. Shop - enable user to select and purchase items
4. Comment - enable user to submit his/her comments on items and read other users'
comments on items
5. Personalize - enable site to remember user's preferences based on previous use of
the site and orders placed
6. Registries - enable user to participate in registry (e.g., wedding, baby); enable
users to search registries
7. Wish Lists - enable user to create and maintain a wish list of desired items; enable
users to search a person's wish list for gift ideas.

Examples of Non-functional Requirements include:

1. Operational - the system should work on any web browser

2. Performance - the system should be available 24/7/365.
3. Security - the system enables registered customers to review their own accounts
4. Cultural - the system exists in versions tailored to global users, e.g., French,
Japanese, German, etc.

B. Pretend that you are going to build a new system that automates or improves the
interview process for the Career Services Department of your school. Develop a
requirements definition for the new system. Include both functional and
nonfunctional system requirements. Pretend you will release the system in three
different versions. Prioritize the requirements accordingly.

Functional Requirements
Version 1:
1. Career Services personnel post each company's interview schedule on the
system.
2. Students may reserve one and only one interview slot per company.
3. Students may change their interview reservation until the day before the
interview.
4. Confirmation of interview reservation is sent to student by email 24 hours
prior to interview.

Version 2:
1. If an interview schedule is full, student may register on a waiting list.
2. If openings appear on an interview schedule, students on waiting list are
notified by email.

Version 3:
1. Students may register their specific qualifications and when a company
seeking those qualifications opens an interview schedule, the student is
notified by email.

Non-functional Requirements (applied to all three versions)

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Performance:
1. System is accessible via a web browser
2. System integrates with the resume-posting system and the job listings system
Operational:
1. System is real-time; interview reservations are immediately reflected in the
interview schedules
2. System is available 24 hours a day whenever university is in session.
Security:
1. Only students registered with Career Services have access to system
2. Students can choose to be identified by name on the schedule or by some
other identifier
Cultural and Political:
1. Students can make only two changes to their interview reservation per
company
2. If a student fails to appear for a scheduled interview, he/she will be dropped
from any other scheduled interviews they may have.

C. Describe in very general terms the as-is business process for registering for classes
at your university. What BPA technique would you use to identify improvements?
With whom would you use the BPA technique? What requirements-gathering
technique would help you apply the BPA technique? List some example
improvements that you would expect to find.

Current Process:
 Student logs on to registration system
 Student submits request for course number and section number
 If seat is available, student is registered for that course.
 If seat is not available, message displays that that section of the course is full.
 Student displays current schedule
 Student confirms current schedule
 Student prints current schedule
 Student logs off the registration system

When using BPA, employ the problem analysis technique. This technique should be
employed during interviews with a sample of existing students to ask them about the
problems they experience with the system and how they would like to see those
problems solved. An example of an improvement that might be suggested is to have
the student's current schedule display immediately after each course is added or
dropped by the student.

D. Describe in very general terms the as-is business process for registering for classes
at your university. What BPI technique would you use to identify improvements?
With whom would you use the BPI technique? What requirements-gathering
technique would help you apply the BPI technique? List some example improvements
that you would expect to find.

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Current Process:
 Student logs on to registration system
 Student submits request for course number and section number
 If seat is available, student is registered for that course.
 If seat is not available, message displays that that section of the course is full.
 Student displays current schedule
 Student confirms current schedule
 Student prints current schedule
 Student logs off the registration system

When using BPI, employ the informal benchmarking technique. This technique
involves studying how other universities' course registration systems work in order to
learn how our system might be improved. The analysts on the team or the
representatives from the Registrar's Office who are on the team could perform this
technique. An example of an improvement that might be suggested is to have the
system automatically ask the student if he/she would like to be added to the waiting
list for closed classes.

E. Describe in very general terms the as-is business process for registering for classes
at your university. What BPR technique would you use to identify improvements?
With whom would you use the BPR technique? What requirements-gathering
technique would help you apply the BPR technique? List some example
improvements that you would expect to find.

Current Process:
 Student logs on to registration system
 Student submits request for course number and section number
 If seat is available, student is registered for that course.
 If seat is not available, message displays that that section of the course is full.
 Student displays current schedule
 Student confirms current schedule
 Student prints current schedule
 Student logs off the registration system

When using BPR, employ the activity elimination technique. This technique involves
studying how we could eliminate activities from the registration process. The
representatives from the Registrar's Office and representatives from the academic
units who are on the team should perform this technique during a JAD session. An
example of a radical change that could be explored is the elimination of prerequisite
checking for a course. Everyone assumes this is a necessary activity, but if
prerequisites are truly meaningful, then students should know not to enroll in courses
for which they are not qualified.

F. Suppose your university is having a dramatic increase in enrollment and is having

difficulty finding enough seats in courses for students so they can take courses

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required for graduation. Perform a technology analysis to identify new ways to help
students complete their studies and graduate.

Technology analysis involves considering a set of technologies and identifying ways

each one could be used in the business process. Some technologies that might be
considered here are:
 Development of online classes – many universities now offer complete
degrees using an online environment.
 Web-based video streaming - students could attend lectures without being
physically in the classroom.
 Extranets - develop an extranet with other higher education institutions in the
area that links registration systems. If a student cannot obtain a seat in a
required course at their home institution, the system searches the other
registration systems to find a seat in a comparable course at another
institution. Tuition credits and transfer credits are automatically arranged by
the system.

G. Suppose you are the analyst charged with developing a new system for the university
bookstore with which students can order books online and have them delivered to
their dorms and off-campus housing. What requirements-gathering techniques will
you use? Describe in detail how you would apply the techniques.

This situation seems ideal for a JAD session. It will be important to have managers
from the bookstore and students together on the team so that each can listen to the
others' point of view. Student expectations will need to be moderated with
constraints faced by the bookstore managers. A JAD session will help build
compromise and consensus and will help create a viable set of business requirements.
Since there is no existing system to study in this case, the BPR technique of outcome
analysis could be used to direct the group's focus on the outcomes that provide value
to the bookstore and its customers.

H. Suppose you are the analyst charged with developing a new system to help senior
managers make better strategic decisions. What requirements-gathering techniques
will you use? Describe in detail how you would apply the techniques.

It would be useful to get the senior managers together in a JAD session to identify
ways in which they require support from the new system for strategic decision-
making. However, given that most senior managers are very busy and are often out
of the office, scheduling a JAD session may be impractical. Consequently, one-on-
one interviews are probably the most useful technique to employ. The interviews
should focus on gathering facts about the types of decision made and the information
required for these decisions.

I. Find a partner and interview each other about what tasks you/they did in the last job
held (full-time, part-time, past or current). If you haven't worked before, then assume
your job is being a student. Before you do this, develop a brief interview plan. After

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your partner interviews you, identify the type of interview, interview approach, and
types of questions used.

Student responses will vary.

J. Find a group of students and run a 60-minute JAD session on improving alumni
relations at your university. Develop a brief JAD plan, select two techniques that will
help identify improvements, and then develop an agenda. Conduct the session using
the agenda, and write your post-session report.

Student responses will vary.

K. Find a questionnaire on the Web that has been created to capture customer
information. Describe the purpose of the survey, the way questions are worded, and
how the questions have been organized. How can it be improved? How will the
responses be analyzed?

Student responses will vary.

L. Develop a questionnaire that will help gather information regarding processes at a

popular restaurant, or the college cafeteria (e.g., ordering, customer service). Give
the questionnaire to 10 to 15 students, analyze the responses, and write a brief report
that describes the results.

Student responses will vary.

M. Contact the Career Services Department at your university and find all the pertinent
documents designed to help students find permanent and/or part-time jobs. Analyze
the documents and write a brief report.

Student responses will vary.

Answers to Textbook Minicases

1. Problem analysis and benchmarking would be feasible strategies to employ in this
situation. This is a problem with a rather narrow scope…the As-Is system needs to be
improved, but there is no broadening of the information that needs to be integrated
into this system. Problem analysis would permit the analyst to identify potential
solutions that the users can identify, then identify the problems those solutions are
addressing, and investigate the root causes of the problems. Analysts could also
employ informal benchmarking, and investigate systems used by other similar
organizations for ideas for this system‟s requirements.

2. If Brian has done a quality job in his initial time estimates, he should not submit to
pressure from his project sponsor to reduce the time frame. It is common for project
sponsors and users to not understand the reason for the time allocated to analysis.

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When talking to Joe, emphasize how important it is to perform the analysis phase so
that requirements are understood and that no important requirements are missed.
Also stress how much more costly it will be to add missed requirements at a later time
compared to including them from the very beginning. If Joe is adamant and he has a
real need to accelerate the project schedule, suggest that time boxing be used to
narrow the initial project scope, and postpone some features to a later version of the
system.

3. Barry has made so many mistakes that it‟s hard to know where to begin. Note,
however, that these mistakes are very common to the novice, and so should be
emphasized to the class. Some of the problem areas include:
 Did not arrange for his visit in advance. The store manager was surprised and
obviously needed to verify who he was. Wasted time and got off on the wrong
foot with the store manager.
 Did not consider the timing of his visit. Observation should include not only
normal operation periods, but also peak periods. Scope should also encompass all
special routines such as store opening and closing.
 Was obtrusive and interfered with the staff performing their functions.
 Scope of analysis was too limited. Only looked at the creation of sandwiches.
Many other managerial tasks in support of delivering the product were omitted
from his scope. Barry didn‟t learn much about store management from his visit.
 Barry‟s has inadvertently undermined his own position on the project team. The
store manager has no confidence in him after this experience, and he is going to
inform the project sponsor of Barry‟s ineptitude. Rather than being praised, Barry
may find himself back on a programming team after this.

4. Ann did a couple of things right: she pre-tested the questionnaire and he gave the
participants a definite due date. These steps are important in conducting
questionnaires. Since they obviously weren‟t sufficient, there may have been some
other things she could have tried.
 A note of explanation about the purpose of the questionnaire and how the
information will be used could have been valuable. Since the questionnaire was
seeking both positive and negative comments on the current system, Ann needed
to assure the clerks of their anonymity (this was not mentioned in the case).
 Stating that the questionnaire was being sent to all clerks could have both helped
and hindered the response rate. If a clerk knows that the questionnaire was sent to
everyone, then they may not feel „singled out,‟ and may be more willing to
participate. On the other hand, knowing that everyone got a questionnaire may be
interpreted to mean that any particular individual‟s lack of response will not be
noticed.
 A reward or inducement for responding can help. Perhaps Ann could have
provided an award to the sales location with the highest response rate (a picnic
lunch or pizza party for everyone is popular). This has the advantage of adding a
little competitive spirit and can improve overall participation. Individual
inducements such as coupons or gift certificates can also be useful.

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 It might have been possible for the sales supervisors at each location to administer
the questionnaires to all of their clerks simultaneously at a regular staff meeting.
Ann could have attended and been available to answer all their questions about
how the information will be used. The clerks would have the visible support of
their supervisors as well to motivate their cooperation.
 The sales supervisors at each location could have required completion of the
questionnaires and monitored compliance by the clerks. Managerial coercion
may be needed in some situations. However, Ann would have to be cautious in
interpreting the survey results in this case, because the questionnaires are not
necessarily being completed anonymously (limiting the truthfulness of the
responses), or the respondents may just put down anything in order to be done
with the requirement.

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